“The Marines will be deployed to the vicinity of Da Nang to strengthen the security in that area,” the New York Times story on The Chronicle’s front page reported. “Da Nang is the site of a major jet bomber base used in recent raids against North Vietnam.”

We chose to write about this cover because of the importance of the Vietnam news, but the stories we found lower on the page are begging to be brought up again.

“Charles Ognibene’s sports car was stolen last September. It was recovered a few days later, but the engine was missing.

“Last week, Ognibene was driving along when another car passed him. Under its hood, Ognibene told police, he heard the smooth purring of his long-lost sports car motor. He took the car’s license number.

“Indulgent detectives checked the car’s owner, who had just purchased the motor from a junkyard, which acquired it from a youth, who admitted the theft of Ognibene’s car.

“‘I told you so,’ the sharp-eared Ognibene said. Detectives, the car owner, the junkyard man — and the young thief — were at a loss for words.”

“Baboon who was a goat’s best friend”: This AP story from what was then South West Africa (now Namibia) belongs in a Ripley’s Believe It or Not museum. Here are the first few paragraphs:

“Ahla, the baboon who did a better job than many humans, is missing. After intensive searches, her owners fear she is dead.

“Ahla was trained to be a full-time goatherd. She was made widely known by South Africa’s Professor Raymond Dart, an anthropologist and joint author of ‘Adventures with the Missing Link.’

“According to Dart, Ahla’s owner employed Ahia as a goatherd for years after she found human herders were not as efficient or as understanding.

“Ahla took 80 goats to graze every morning and brought them back at night. She used a rallying ‘ho-ho-ho’ cry, rounded up strays and collected newborn kids and carried them home.”

Looking back: What’s more unbelievable, the motor-tuned ear of Mr. Ognibene or the goat-herding baboon of South West Africa?

See more front pages: Go to SFChronicle.com/covers to search a database of hundreds of Chronicle Covers articles that showcase the newspaper's history.